Words by Ed King / Pics from Google Maps or taken from Erdington Local archives
Police have apprehended and arrested a man on suspicion of burglary in the early hours of Tuesday morning on Jerry’s Lane.
Responding to call over concerns a break in was taking place, officers from the recently formed Operation Skybridge responded quickly and arrived at the address at around 2am on 8 October.
After searching the scene and surrounding areas, a 28 year old man was found hiding in a nearby garden and arrested on suspicion of burglary.
Tesfa Bernard-Wheeler, from Selly Oak, was subsequently charged with the offence and remanded to appear before Birmingham Magistrates Court on 9 October.
A spokesperson from West Midlands Police told: “We’ve arrested a suspected burglar after promptly responding to a break-in in Birmingham this morning (8 October).
“We were alerted to a burglary taking place in Jerry’s Lane, Erdington, at around 2am. Officers from our Op Skybridge Team – part of the Birmingham Proactive Crime Team – quickly arrived and a suspect was seen leaving the area.”
They added: “A 28-year-old man was found in a nearby garden and arrested on suspicion of burglary. He remains in police custody for questioning.
“The team, made up of plain clothes and uniformed officers, target areas where information is received about crime that affects our communities.”
Operation Skybridge was recently launched with officers from the Birmingham Proactive Crime Team, with a mandate to tackle street level and community crime such as robbery, assault, home invasions, burglaries, and drug dealing.
Initially deployed in Selly Oak and Erdington, the team behind Operation Skybridge wasted little time in making significant arrests.
On 5 October, the special police team announced they had arrested a man the caught on Erdington High Street with 40 wraps of cocaine hidden in his boxer shorts which lead them to make a wider seizure of drugs worth over £5000.
Parts of Erdington High Street have long been blighted by open air drug dealing, leaving many local residents and shoppers alike feeling unsafe in Erdington Town Centre and leading to contact calls for extra police presence
It is hoped by many in the area the new Operation Skybridge might start to turn the tide on crime on Erdington Town Centre and other crime hotspots across the North Birmingham constituency.
Sergeant Leon Butler from Operation Skybridge told: “We’ve carried out dozens of stop and searches, made 12 arrests, disrupted drug dealing on the streets and carried out numerous seizures of weapons, drugs and cars.
“Last week we stopped and searched a man in Erdington to find he had 40 wraps of cocaine in his boxers.
“Through investigation and subsequent warrants we executed, we made a higher value drugs seizure of £5,000. This extra legwork means there is a good chance he will face a greater sanction, which is really good news for the force and for the community.”
He added: “We’re also seizing large amounts of drugs from other offenders, arresting nominals for robberies and burglaries and we’ve seized numerous weapons which could have caused real harm out on the streets.
“This is pure proactive policing, causing maximum difficulty and disruption to those who are doing the most harm to our communities.”
West Midlands Police are asking Erdington locals to contact them about crime in the area by calling 101 and quoting #OpSkybridge, stating: “The intelligence we receive will be considered and acted upon.”